Do hourly hospital ward rounds improve quality of patient care?

A regular visit from a nurse can feel like a lifeline to a person lying in a hospital bed, but researchers from Kingston University and St George’s, University of London are examining whether hourly ward rounds really do help deliver safe, compassionate, patient-centred care.

Led by Professor Ruth Harris from the Faculty of Health Social Care and Education, run jointly by Kingston and St George’s, the study will examine whether regular, systematic visits by nurses to all patients on a ward are, in fact, beneficial.